The Accident
by Gemsy
Summary: Things should never be left said till the end, as the end could be to late.


So I'm halfway through my other story, The Gap Year, when I got an idea for this story. My brain went into over drive, and could I stop, NOOOO! It wouldn't let me. So here it is, hope its ok and that you'll enjoy. Feel free to comment or criticize either way, it will help.

Not to spoil it, but I kind of 'borrowed' the scene from 'Captain Jack Harkness' near the end.

Gemsy x

I SADLEY DO NOT OWN TORCHWOOD OR THE CHARACTERS, IF I DID THEN I WOULDN'T BE WRITING THESE STORIES!

Song by John Barrowman Heaven

The Accident

**Summary**

**Ianto is in love, but is afraid to tell him, in fear of losing him. But the night of the accident makes him declare his love and realises that he could lose him forever.**

Ianto worked for an up and coming Business Company, NortEast Ltd. He had only applied as a temp a year ago, but the manager of the company thought he was better than a temp, so suggested a full time position, so he took up the offer. He had some excellent organising skills, and the company did need a 'new look'. On his first day, Toshiko Sato had taken him under her wing; she was on the promotion board to be a junior executive, but felt for Ianto as he looked lost. She guided him through the phone system, filing, meeting time table, and who not to argue with if they demanded to talk to the head. He finally got into the swing of things, and Tosh got her promotion, after two months of waiting, so she invited a select few to a celebration party. He met Owen Harper, who had transferred from another unit 2 years ago, Tosh had a little thing for him, and Ianto noticed, as she always got 'giddy' like a school girl when he was around. There were a few other faces that he'd met and spoken to briefly, and there was Jack Harkness. He was considered the best among others, someone to look up, ask for guidance, and was always willing to help. When he first saw him, he could believe how goddamn gorgeous he was. He was perfect in every way; like somebody had hand crafted him. And this was the beginning of long journey to new expectations.

'I think you should tell him' Tosh said, perched on the edge of her seat after hearing some great news.

'Really?' I don't think I'm ready for telling two people in one day' Ianto replied.

'If you don't tell him now, then it's going to take another year for you to pluck up some courage, and by then, he might have moved on' explained Tosh.

'I dunno, I mean I've only come to terms with it myself, and what if he doesn't even like me, then I'll feel like a complete idiot, and I'll have to avoid him for the next….whenever! This will be difficult, as we both work here'

'Ianto, stop making excuses and just tell him, or I will' Tosh protested.

'Tell who what?' Owen chipped in as he walked into the canteen.

'Nothing'

'Ianto loves Jack! Tosh turned to Owen, with the widest grin on her face.

'Thanks Tosh'

'You're welcome' she nodded.

'I knew before you, I mean, c'mon, it's not exactly obvious, the way you act when he walks into the room, or when you stare at him when he's at the other end of the corridor' Owen pointing out just some of the noticeable reactions.

'You knew and didn't tell me, Owen I'm hurt' Tosh answered back.

'Well I was more for Ianto's welfare, didn't want to say anything until I was certain'

'You thinking of somebodies pride, other than _yourself,_ my goodness Owen, are you feeling OK?' Tosh laughed as he shot her a sarcastic look.

'Do you think he knows?' Ianto feeling a little concerned, how now both Tosh and Owen knew.

'There's only one way to find matey, you've got to tell him' Owen went up to him and placed his arm around his shoulder.

'I can't, I mean I'm just a receptionist, someone who takes the calls, passes the messages over, and makes the occasional coffees, and he's a big name executive, the 'Captain' of all trades' he sat down on the sofa and put his hands in his head.

Tosh looked over at Owen, who just shrugged and got his dinner out of the fridge, when she came up with an idea.

'I have a plan; the mid-term party is coming up at the end of the week, right. So everyone is going to be there, including you know who. It's a night to remember or, for some to _try to_ remember' she looked over to Owen who just waved his hand. 'So, you're going to talk to him more, get to know him a little better, yes OK he is an executive, and a good one at that, but he's really nice, kind, funny, caring, and definitely single, and when _YOU _areat the party, he'll not just see the receptionist, he will see Ianto Jones'

'So how do I get to 'know' him in a week, I can't leave my desk for too long to have a conversation?'.

'Miss Sato, would you and Mr Jones care to me and Mr Harkness for some drinks tonight?' Owen formally suggested.

Tosh cocked her head and smiled. 'We would love to Mr Harper' Tosh replied, all smiles.

'There we have it, it's Friday, no working at the weekend, so no excuses to leave early, and you'll have more than enough time to talk to him' Owen mentioned, as he sat at the table feeling somewhat pleased with himself for the fantastic idea.

'Great, this is going to work Ianto, I know it is. Now, why don't you go and make Jack a coffee, I'm sure he'll need one' Tosh told him and got the cup and kettle on the boil whilst she said it.

'Fine, and thank you, the both of you's, I really appreciate this' Ianto said as he stood up and hugged Tosh and shook Owen's hand.

Tosh and Owen left the canteen, and went back their desks, as they left Ianto to, in a state of panic.

'You'll be fine, it's only taking a coffee to the man you adore and love, what can go wrong ' he said to himself, and as he picked up the coffee cup, the cup dropped out of his hands.

'Bloody perfect, strike one'.

He picked up the broken cup, and moped up the mess on the floor, and then made another drink. As he walked down the corridor, he felt he heart beating faster, and a wave of nervousness pasted over him. 'He's only a man' he told himself. 'He's only a gorgeous man; he's only a gorgeous American who you fancy the pants off'.

He took a deep breath as he stood at the door, and knocked. He waited for an answer and entered the room.

'Mr Harkness, I thought you'd like a coffee' he said as calmly as he could.

'You read my mind….sorry…'

'Ianto Sir'

'Right, you read my mind, Ianto. Thank you. And it's Jack, not Sir or Mr Harkness, just…Jack, I'm good with faces but not with names, you work on reception, don't you?'

'Yes, I certainly do, I like to think I keep everything running smoothly as possible ….Jack'

'Well you're doing a great job Ianto'

Jack took a sip from the coffee mug, and shouted to Ianto who was sneaking out of the office

'Hey, great coffee'

Ianto turned and nodded his head to Jack as he closed the door behind him.

'That went well, broken the tip of the iceberg' he said himself as he headed back to reception.

The rest of the day past quite quickly, Owen came past the desk saying that tonight was on, and that Tosh would pick him up at 7:30pm, and they would meet at the local pub. Time was ticking on and around 4:30pm most of the executives had left, and still no sign on Jack, he kept watching and waiting, a phone rang and he jumped, he picked it up still watching the lift doors as he spoke. Finally the doors slid open and he watched as Jack stepped out wearing his long grey military type coat, he looked great in it. He didn't expect him to look in his direction, probably forgotten him already, but Ianto glanced up for a brief moment and saw Jack staring his way, and waved. He looked around to see if anyone else was there, but there wasn't, he was waving at him. Ianto smiled and waved back, he was looking forward to tonight, now that Jack knew who he was.

It was 6pm, Ianto was home, he had called into the local deli bar and grab a sandwich, he knew he would have time to cook, not if wanted to look his best for meeting Jack, and the others of course. He got a quick shower, and dried off, then looked in his wardrobe. Plenty of suits, but this a casual night, he grabbed the only decent clean looking pair of stonewash coloured jeans that were hanging up, along with a white short sleeve shirt. He then tidied his hair up, making sure it looked perfect. He looked at his watch, 7pm, great half an hour to kill; he opened a bottle of beer that was in the fridge, not a great idea to drink, as it would most likely good straight to his head. He felt like that time had stopped completely, the hand on the clock never seemed to move, then finally there was a knock at the door, it was Tosh, looking rather nice.

'Hey, you ready' Tosh greeted Ianto

'As I'll ever be, you're looking lovely this evening, out to impress anyone?' teased Ianto. She knew fine well that she had a thing for Owen.

'Well a girls gotta try, never know what could happen' she replied. 'You're looking incredible yourself, Jack will certainly notice you'

'I hope so, come on lets go'

They jumped in the taxi that was waiting and headed to the pub. They got pretty quickly and headed inside where they saw Owen at the bar, no sign of Jack.

'Hey, wow, look at you Miss Sato, looking fantastic, Ianto how you doing mate' Owen greeted them with a drink.

'Nervous, is he here?' Ianto asked looking round the room.

'Yeah, got some seats up by the pool table, follow me'

They followed and turned the corner, that's when he saw him. Never in a million years did Ianto think a man could look so handsome. He was sporting blue jeans, and a close fit red t-shirt with the logo 'Mr Fantastic' written on it. 'At least he has a sense of humour' he thought.

'Ianto, Jack. Jack, Ianto.'

'Yes, our wonderful receptionist, how are Ianto?'

'Very well Jack, thank you'

'So you've already met?' Owen asked knowing fine well that they have.

'Yes it was the fantastic coffee he served up for me that made me remember him, also how could you forget a beautiful face like his' Jack smiled as he toasted Ianto.

'That he has, to Ianto and all of us, four, the best business suits there can ever be' Tosh said as she

raised her glass along with Owen.

The night was moving well, Tosh and Owen had managed to move seats, so it meant that Jack and Ianto were sitting next to each other. They were talking about jobs, life in general, and the title of 'Captain'.

'When I was at university I studied business management, and it was something which I quite fancied since I can remember. But then some of my mates decided they'd enlist in the armed forces. It was sort of a spur-of-the-moment idea, and at the time thought it was pretty cool, you know, serve the county, fighting off the enemy. So as time went by, I upped my ranks and eventually became 'Captain'. I held the title for about year, and one day, when I was at home, I was called up for active duty. It was supposed to be a simple intelligent gathering operation; there was no threat for militia, no warning signs when we arrived. But in the middle of the night the base was attacked, a suicide bomber drove into the building. I heard the crash, and the explosion, managed to get most of my men to safety, however there were still people inside. So I went back in, got as far to dorms as possible only to be trapped by falling debris.

The next thing I know is, I'm in a military hospital back in the UK, someone had told me 5 weeks had pasted, and that it was touch and go for some time. When the ceiling had collapsed apparently I was trying to save my men, but they found me, only instead of 8 coming out, there were 4, one of them was me. They said that my right leg had been caught in mesh and wiring, and crushed by the concrete; luckily they managed to save it, but it would be a very long time before I gained my full strength. So I thought long and hard about it, and retired, on the basis of unfit for duty, received my medal and became jobless. It was some time before I got myself pulled together, but studied business whilst on the mend. Finally I was fit and ready to go again, applied for executive jobs, got a post and here I am today'.

Ianto sat there mesmerized by every word coming from Jack and had not realised that he'd finished talking, when Owen offered to buy the next round

'Jack, Ianto I'm buying who's having what?'

'Not for Owen mate cheers anyway, I've got a meeting to prepare for Monday, and I've been putting it off for ages, so I'm calling it night' Jack said.

'No problem, Ianto what you drinking?.

'I good thanks, I'm going to head home too'

'Really, bloody hell it's only…. 1am!. Time flies when you're having fun' Owen said as he looked at his watch.

'Ianto, you heading up the street or down?' Jack asked

'Down, just before the church'

'You wanna share a taxi, I'm going that way, past the church'

'Yeah sure, thanks'

They headed outside and waited in line, and jumped in the next taxi. It was 20 minute journey from the pub to Ianto's but it seemed to last a lot longer.

The closeness he was to Jack was unbearable, he wanted to turn and kiss him there and then, and all these thoughts went through his mind. He suddenly came to when he felt something touch his thigh, he glanced down and saw Jacks hand resting on it, stroking it. Ianto smiled and placed his hand onto of Jack's and held it there. They both turned and faced each other, eyes meeting and searching for something, Ianto leaned in a kissed him gently, and pulled back waiting for a response for Jack, who, in turned moved closer and kissed him a little firmer, opening his mouth so he could be inside Ianto's. Their tongue's searched and explored as the two men seemed to lose themselves in one another.

'Please Jack, please….'

Ianto opened his eyes, and saw the cream colour of his ceiling, and felt the emptiness of the space next to hm. He turned over and saw the time, 8am. He sighed. He got up and noticed he was still dressed from last night. He went downstairs and into the kitchen. Something caught his eye next to the coffee machine, and went over to find a note, written from Jack.

'_Hope you are feeling fine this morning and to hung-over, you kind of passed out in the taxi, so I had to carry you in and managed to figure out you're room. The house keys should be on the door mat, after I pushed them through the letter box. See you Monday. Jack.'_

'Fuck, just what I needed to happen, pass out on the man of my dreams. Strike Two'. He said to himself.

He switched the coffee machine on and got something to eat to help him get over this hang-over. At least he managed to have some sort of conversation with him, now all he needed to do was continue with it, next stop, mid-term party.

The weekend went over quick, and the next thing Ianto knew it was Monday. The alarm clicked in at 6am, rolling over he turned it off, and headed to the get showered. For some reason he was feeling nervous about going into work, not because he had passed out in the back of a taxi with Jack present, but know he was on speaking term with him. Once he had finished in the shower, he opened his wardrobe and stood for a moment, he was actually stuck on what to wear; it would normally be white shirt, black trouser and whatever tie he had to hand, this time he wanted to impress. He took out his red shirt, quickly ironed it, and found a waistcoat that had never been worn, with label still attached, black tie and the usual black trousers. He stood and looked at himself in the mirror, and when satisfied he went down stairs and made himself breakfast.

Time was ticking on and he needed to be at work for 8:15am, so grabbed his keys and headed out.

Ianto sat at his desk, in the main hall, switched on his computer and read through his e-mails. Then checked the tasking diary, there were 3 meeting s to be held, one of them was Jack's. His was scheduled for 3pm this afternoon. The mail arrived and there was one for Jack.

As the suits started to arrive, Ianto felt a little uneasy, kept shifting in his seat, altering his tie, wanting to look good for Jack. He looked up and saw him walk through the door, he stopped and chatted to some other exec's, laughing and joking on. He then started to walk in his direction.

'Good morning, Ianto. Feeling better?' Jack asked with a little concern in his voice.

'Jack, good morning, yes I am, and thank you for the other night, I feel like right idiot.' Ianto admitted.

'Hey don't feel like that, everyone has their limit, mine was the reason I was leaving, one more and god knows what might have happened.' Jack laughed as he turned to head to the lift.

'Oh, Jack.' Ianto called and stood up to give him the letter.

'This arrived for you'

'Excellent, those document's I've been waiting ages for'. Jack took the letter and looked at Ianto in awe. 'Nice suit by the way, definitely you

'Thank you', is all Ianto could say as he turned a shade lighter than his shirt.

The morning ticked over nicely. No issues or problems to report. It was hitting 12:30pm and Ianto was in need of some food.

He made his way to the canteen and saw Owen and Tosh, who were sitting quite cosy next to each other, he wondered what he has missed.

'Ahem, sorry for interrupting'. He said. 'Did I miss something the other night when I left?'

'Tosh, told me that she liked me, and I never knew. And I remembered aswell, didn't get to pissed'. Owen replied, grinning.

'Well congratulations, just my turn next, to tell Jack that is'

'You're looking rather dapper Ianto, trying to impress are we' Tosh stated.

'Well he likes the suit; spoke to him briefly this morning'

'Huston, we are making progress'. Said Owen, in a poor excuses of an American accent.

The sat and chatted for a bit about how things were working out, and that Ianto needed to make the next move. Tosh and Owen left to go back to work, so Ianto made himself a coffee and one for Jack. He headed towards his office, and knocked on the door. Jack was on the phone, but waved him in, and pointed to the seat. Ianto sat down and looked at some of the pictures he had on his desk and walls.

'Sorry about that, just trying to get everything finalized for this afternoon'

'Thought you'd like this, and I was right'. Ianto handed the coffee to Jack.

'You, Ianto Jones, are a life saver, thank you'

'So are you all sorted then, or is that stupid question.'

'Some of the sales pitches that these people are coming up are ridicules, far to high for the products these have to sell. So I'm trying to tell them they have to lower the price if they want to make a profit. But some are so god damn stubborn'

'Sounds complicated, but you're the right man for it, I'm sure you can convince them before 3pm'

'Thanks Ianto, I appreciate it. Tell me something, how do you make such a great coffee?'

Ianto laughed at the comment. 'It's a family secret and I'd have to shoot you if I told you!'

'Understood' Jack laughed as he took another drink.

'Look, I'm sorry about passing out on you, I'm hopeless with handling my drink'. Ianto told Jack.

'Hey it's fine, honestly, plus you look kinda cute when you're asleep'. Jack said with a little grin.

'You were watching me?'.

'Only to make sure you were still breathing, and when you moved then it was good enough confirmation'

'Well, again thank you for your concern'

Ianto stood up and headed for the door when Jack spoke.

'Ianto… this…. mid-term party thing, will you be there?' Jack hesitated to ask.

'Well I _was_ thinking of going, only if you are, now that Tosh and Owen are an item, looks like I'll be left to entertain myself.'

'Finally, it's only taken for gods know how long, and I was only gonna go if you were, same reason'

'Really, I thought there'd be loads of people for you to talk to?

'Yeah, there are, but it's all "how many numbers you punched this week" or "who's the biggest name you signed for the company". I just want a normal conversation, that doesn't relate to work.'

'Well in that case I will be there, and I'll try not to talk about work, I promise'

'Good, thank you, I'll pick up on the way if you want, saying the taxi will pass your house'

There was a brief moment when they looked at each other in the eye, a sparked between them, a connection, Jack leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips and pulled back.

'I'd better get back to reception' Ianto said, not sure what had just happened.

'Yeah, erm, got this meeting to sort out' Jack said, feeling a little taken aback.

Ianto turned and opened the door, as he headed back to reception. He kept thinking, 'had Jack just kissed him, this wasn't a dream, he knew that, and I'm walking away, why you fool, that doesn't look good if you walk away from something like that, now Jack is going to think I'm not interested. Great.'

The rest of the day pasted slowly, to slowly infact. He showed the members of the meeting to the conference room, and saw Jack sitting at the head of the table, watching him, Jack gave a little smile, and Ianto nodded.

The week went over pretty much the same; Jack would walk in, Ianto at his desk, Jack would hi, Ianto would acknowledge. He would make the occasional coffee, but get someone else to take it to him. This is what he always wanted, but now that Jack had kissed him, he was afraid of being rejected.

Friday soon came and the place was alive, everyone seemed happy, and excited for tonight, Tosh and Owen had being an item for just under a week, and they seemed happy, everyone but Ianto. He felt like not going tonight, but Tosh told he was and that was that, no back answering. He had told her what had happened and in some way she knew how he felt, but she told him that if he ignored it then it wouldn't go away.

He was having a case of déjà vu. It was 7:30pm Tosh was his door, ready to take him to the party. Jack had never gotten back to him about what time who was picking who up, so he just assumed that Jack would make his own way. And he was right, they got in and the place was busy, people from the office and others that he didn't recognise. Ianto made his way to the bar and order a drink, found a seat near the dance floor and watched as Owen and Tosh were dancing.

He saw Jack across the other side of the room, talking to some people, sipping his drink, looking handsome as ever. He looked at his empty glass, a decided to get another drink. While at the bar Owen came up to him and told not to worry, everything would be fine, he had a plan.

He sat back down table, and noticed Jack was still on the other side of the hall, but looking his way. He strode across the dance floor towards Ianto, took his hand and pulled him up, taking centre stage, and put his arms around Ianto's waist, and started to dance with him.

Ianto felt warm and happy in the embrace of Jack, it was what he had wanted in so long, and no he had it, he didn't want to let him go. All he had to do now was say those 3 little words.

The music stopped and they looked at one another in the eye, Ianto was about to speak when the microphone stopped him.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the mid-term party, hope you are all enjoying yourselves, having plenty of food, and most importantly, getting drunk! Now as you know, every year we have someone who takes centre stage and gives us all a song, and that person is absolutely fantastic, so without further to do, please give a warm NorthEast Ltd welcome to Jack 'Captain' Harkness'

Ianto looked at him with surprise, is there nothing this man can't do.

'You can sing, I didn't know that' Ianto shouted over the applause

'Another talent of mine, Ianto, don't go anywhere; I want to dance with you when I'm finished up there'

Ianto watched in amazement as Jack went up on stage and started to sing, he voice was so beautiful, and soft, he felt weak at the sound coming from Jack.

Oh, once in your life you find someone

Who will turn your world around

Bring you up when you're feeling down

Yah, nothing can change

What you mean to me

Oh there's lots that I could say

But just hold me now

'Cause our love will light the way

Baby, you're all that I want

When you're lying here in my arms

I'm finding it hard to believe

We're in heaven

And love is all that I need

And I found it there in your heart

It isn't too hard to see

We're in heaven

When Jack finished the crowd cheered and shouted, they loved him, but know he wanted to be with Ianto. He left the stage and went to the spot where he had left Ianto. He wasn't there. He found Tosh and Owen and asked if they and seen him. Owen said that he was going home, and if Jack was asking after him, to meet him at his.

Jack grabbed his jacket, and went to car, and headed out, it was dark, and the road was hardly visible, why the company couldn't choose a hotel in the middle of the city, instead of the middle of no-where. There were two sets of headlights coming towards him, he couldn't see, they were blinding, the car swerved and hit the embankment.

Ianto must have fallen asleep, it was starting to get light, dawn was breaking, and the sound of his mobile was driving him crazy, who the hell calls at this time.

'Hello' Ianto groaned

'Ianto, its Owen. Bloody hell mate how long does it take for you to answer a phone, look get yourself to A and E, it's Jack, he's been in an accident, it's bad mate, really bad'.

Without even replying to Owen, Ianto shot up, grabbed his key and headed out to the car. He must have broken several speed limits on the way, but he didn't care, this was Jack, his Jack.

Ianto was greeted by Owen and Tosh, still in there evening wear, and told him that Jack was in critical condition. The driver of the other vehicle had been drinking, had his full beam lights on and didn't see Jack's car, he was the one who called it in, he managed to stop the car further up the road and saw the state of Jack's car. It was a wreck; the fire crew had to cut him out.

Hours pasted, with no news on how Jack's condition was, doctors were rushing around, left, right and centre. Papers been passed, asking for details, medical history, next of kin.

Ianto nodded off, he kept thinking if only he had stayed then this would not have happened, he would be with Jack, at his, lying next to each other, telling him how he loved him.

A doctor finally came out and said that his condition has improved slightly, but he was in a coma. Ianto asked to go and see him, and they let him through, but be prepared as he was surround by wires and monitors.

Ianto cried, seeing Jack lying lifeless on the bed, he sat down beside him and looked at him, lay his head down sobbed his heart out.

Hours turned into days; days into weeks, Ianto refused to leave his side, not wanting him to wake up without someone there who cares for him. Every so often the machines hocked up to Jack would bleep frantically, and half a dozen doctors and nurses would enter the room and remove Ianto. Tosh got the chance to take him home, and force him to shower and eat. Finally he did managed to get some rest, and woke up in shock when he realised he was at home.

It was week 6 since the accident and Jack was still in a coma, although his vital signs had improved enormously, Ianto was sitting in his spot next to Jack, when he decided he need to tell him something.

'Jack, I don't know whether you can hear me or not, but the doctor said it might help if I try and talk to you, not sure if it will help. One things for sure, I can see your face, instead of looking at horrible wires, but I need to see your smile, that's the only thing that kept me going, even one smile from you in the morning at work, would keep me going till the next day. I know you can hear me Jack; you just need to pull through and wake up, because there's something I need to tell you. I have been wanting to for a long time, but never had the courage too. Why is we wait till moments like this to tell someone…..we love them. I love Jack Harkness, more than anything in the world, and that's why you need to wake up, please you can't leave me Jack. I need you. I love you.'

Ianto put his hands in his head and cried softly, letting the tears falling gently down his face. He was like this for a few moments when the monitor started to beep, not like before tho, this was different, and again. Then there was a loud sigh coming from Jacks bed. He looked up and saw Jack's eyes and mouth opening and heard him say.

'I love to you too, Ianto Jones'

THE END


End file.
